Is This Goodbye?
by SilverPedals1402
Summary: Is it worse to know when you're going to die, or is it worse when you don't get to say goodbye? Never in his life has Tony been so afraid to die, never in his life had he ever thought that life was precious. Unless he finds a way around it, death is coming, and death does not stop for goodbyes.
1. Chapter 1

**Okay, I'm well aware that i have other stories that need to be attended to, and others that I have promised would be updated soon, but I've been out of Town, and I babysit my little brother after school for a little bit, and with the warm weather, he likes to be outside more, so yeah...And it doesn't help, that I've got a bit of writers block for the story i was working on updating... And others...  
**

**But, trust me, i will get to those, I WILL NOT FORGET about them! I mean it, i WONT! I'll get to them, when i can, but this idea popped into my head, and it was easy to write, so, I just had to...sorry.**

**Disclaimer: IMAA is not mine, and i sure hope not.**

He always knew his life would come to an end. He always knew, that one day, something was bound to happen. That one day, his life would just end. It could be painful, peaceful, or sudden, but he still knew he was bound to die sooner or later.

So, why was he so afraid of dying?

If he knew he was going to die, the why was he so scared? Was it because he was just waiting for it to happen, or was it because he _knew _it was going to happen? Was there any way to stop it? Could he at least prolong it? Would he get to say goodbye, or would it be so sudden, he wouldn't get the chance?

What about his friends? His family? Pepper?

Did they know? Did they have a chance of saving him? Could _they_ prolong it? Were they as scared as he was? Or were they going to stand strong for him? Were they dying too? He certainly hoped not.

Was 15 day's long enough? Was it too short? Too sudden? Should he hope for longer, or just get it over with? Maybe it was all a lie. Maybe this was all just a joke, a sick game that someone wanted to play.

Maybe, this wasn't real.

Then why did it feel so _real_?

…

Tony twisted the wrench he held in his hand as he observed the red and gold armor in front of him. He wondered if he should fix the leg first or the chest plate. The leg was important because it had the flight stabilizers in them, and without the one leg, he'd have some issues flying. But if he needed to use the armor in emergency, his ability to fly would be the least of his worries. His chest plate was all that guarded his heart implant. One shot to his chest could kill him.

After one last quick consideration, he worked on the chest plate.

"Ugh!" A female voice said behind him. "This is boring!"

"Pepper, I'm sorry, but you know these repairs are my top priority." Tony responded to his best friend. "If something were to happen, and iron man was needed, what would happen if I couldn't go out there?"

"You'd be safe?" Pepper suggested.

Tony sighed. "Lives would be at risk." He corrected her.

"I know, but can't Rhodey take care of that?" Pepper asked, eyeing their African American friend who made it clear that he wasn't talking to them until his finished his studying.

"Sure, but what if he needs my help?" Tony asked, turning to face Pepper. "The stealth armor is busted, the hulkbuster is under an upgrade, and you know I don't have my snow armor made yet."

"What about the space armor or the Mark I?" Pepper said crossing her arms.

Tony sighed. She was really stubborn sometimes.

"The space armor, is only suited for space explorations, missions, etc." He started. "And the Mark I, would work, but you know how behind that one is from the Mark II."

Pepper just groaned and threw herself into a chair. "Then what do I do? I'm bored!"

"Do homework, read, sleep, and you can even use the computer!" Tony said, trying to get back to work.

"Really?" Pepper said smiling. He never willingly let her on the computer for leisure activities.

"Really." Tony confirmed.

She squealed and ran for the computer, spinning herself on the swivel chair in the process. She instantly looked for the least boring thing she could do. She smiled when she finally was able to do something fun that day.

While she did that, Tony continued to fix his beat up armor, and Rhodey finished up his studying. It was a few hours later, and Pepper managed not to bore herself in that time frame. The sun was setting low and school was the next day, so the trio retired to their respectful homes. Tony and Rhodey to Rhodey's home, and Pepper to her own.

"Get anything done?" Rhodey asked as they walked home.

"Yep, just one more thing on the chest piece, then I get to move on to the leg." Tony said.

"I thought you'd be farther." Rhodey commented, confused.

"Where were you?" Tony asked, before continuing with a shake of his head. "Pepper was bored and wouldn't leave me alone, until I let her on the computer."

Rhodey raised his eyebrows. "You let her on the computer to do something other than 'work'?"

"Yeah, otherwise I'd never –,"

Tony interrupted himself with a fit of coughs. Rhodey patted his back for a moment, before Tony straightened himself.

"You alright, Tony?" Rhodey asked.

"Yeah, it's probably just a cold." Tony said, his head did hurt after all. "I'm sure rest will help, so let's go, we have a test tomorrow."

**Very short i know, but I hope it was good. **

**Fun Fact: _I can't eat eggs, without my stomach hurting really bad, and at first i thought it was because it had butter in it (dairy) But butter doesn't normally bother me, but even with my medicine, I still get stomachaches...Ugh, so now i can't eat eggs... -.-_**

**I gotta say you guys, i have the WORST stage fright ever! I had a speech in class today, and i was literally in tears in the hallway. And everyone had to put their heads down, before i even spoke my first word, and i had almost tripped after i kicked a desk, and i almost started to laugh, and i don't even know if the teacher heard my speech or not...:( AND i was shaking and my face was burning up, and i almost choked, AND i felt lightheaded! I REALLY HATE PUBLIC SPEAKING! DX**

**Anyways...I hope you guys liked it, I want to share that i got half of Baby Genius done, Half of Snow Storm done, most of Not So Ordinary done, and The beginning of both Tragedy Struck and Life without them done when i had time. So, YAY! They should be up soon, but this weekend, im not available again, because I'm pretty sure my friend is sleeping over and Sunday is MOTHERS DAY! :D so, yeah...**

**Well, REVIEW, and Stay tuned for the next chapter! :D**

**P.S. MCA's are NOT fun :(**


	2. Chapter 2

**So, yeah, this was fun to write so i updated it! :D I really liked this chapter and i hope you guys do to! :) **

**Disclaimer: IMAA is not mine, and nor will it ever be.**

(Three days later)

Tony stood up and looked proudly at his armor. "There, I finished."

Pepper jumped out of her seat. "Really!?"

He gave a strange look, before he chuckled. "Yeah, really."

"FINALLY!" She practically shouted. "It's been so boring!"

"I'm sure it wasn't that bad." Tony said wiping his oil and grease covered hand with a rag.

He sat down in his swivel chair and sighed. It was good to finally relax. To be honest that was one of the hardest repairs he's done in a while, and honestly, repairs were more exhausting than upgrades. Unless it was a whole entire upgrade, looks and all, upgrades were pretty basic, for him at least.

"Well, I'm sure it was." Pepper said, slightly pouting because he just stole her spot.

He raised his eyebrows and smiled lightly. "Okay, what can I do to make it up to you?"

"You could get out of the armory and do something with me." Pepper said, pointing with her thumb to the door.

With a short glance at his computer, he sighed with a nod. "Fine, take me wherever you want."

He had planned to finish working on the new AI he's been working on, but at the moment, Pepper seemed on the edge of freaking out at him for being in his lab for so long. So his friend was his first priority.

"Wherever?" She asked, a certain glint in her eyes.

He narrowed his eyes, "Depends."

"Aw, you're no fun." She said.

"I didn't say no." Tony pointed out.

Pepper was about to respond but Tony started to cough. When he straightened, she raised an eyebrow. "Cold still hasn't gone away?"

"Guess not." Tony said. Neither of them were particularly worried about it.

"Figures, this armory is so dusty." She said.

"I'll clean it later, now where did you have in mind?"

She smiled as she started to head for the door. "The beach."

He opened his mouth to protest, but he felt a sudden burning feel in his throat and he started to cough once more. Once he stopped, which wasn't long, the burning went away. With a frown he decided he needed water, so he grabbed a water bottle and followed Pepper out of the armory.

"Why the beach?" Tony finally said.

"Because it's pretty much summer and it's a Friday, and I haven't been to the beach all year, so, you're taking me whether or not you want to."

"Should we get Rhodey?"

"No, then you and him would talk nonstop about Iron man." Pepper said.

He sighed as he followed her out.

…

At the beach, Pepper smiled as the sun shined down. There was not a cloud in sight, and they could almost see the heat. The beach was not as crowded as they had originally thought, so they pretty much had a choice to sit anywhere.

Pepper wore a blue bikini, which had white strips and tied behind her back and neck. She wore a pair of sunglasses and her hair was in a ponytail. She was carrying a yellow towel and a bag that held sunscreen, snacks, water, and her and Tony's phone. Tony wore a red pair of swim trucks, he was going to wear a t-shirt, but Pepper didn't want him to, for whatever reason. He carried a dark blue towel and of course, his armor backpack.

"Finally," Pepper said. "Fresh air at last!"

Tony rolled his eyes as he followed her to a spot she found in the sun. They laid out their towels and placed their bags/backpacks next to each other.

"What now?" Tony asked.

She looked at him as she dug through her back for her sunscreen. Once she grabbed it she put it in Tony's hands and plopped down on her towel. "First, we need sunscreen, and I can't reach my back, so can you?"

Tony felt his cheeks heat up, but managed to nod. He sat down on his knees next to her and opened the sunscreen. Pepper crossed her arms under her head and rested her forehead on them as she waited. Tony squeezed some of the sunscreen on his hands and hesitated before he started to rub the lotion around, first on her upper back. He heard Pepper giggle, which made him blush, but he shook his head as he finished the upper part of her back.

"You're liking this." Tony said. "Did you plan this?"

"No." Pepper said, not looking up. "Even if I did, I know I have to get you next so, what's the point?"

He didn't respond, instead he put some more sunscreen in his hand and started to rub the last bit on her lower back, which he got real red while he did that. He paused as Pepper moved a bit to scratch her neck.

He hadn't realized he had started to stare, or that his hand was still on her back, even though he had finished, until Pepper spoke up.

"You know," She began, not looking up, but a smile evident in her voice. "The longer you keep your hand there, the more people will think we're dating, or that you like me."

He instantly pulled his hand back, his face red. "Oh…yeah, sorry."

She laughed as she sat up. She stood up and finished up what she could reach and told Tony to turn around so she could get his back. When he tried to protest and say that he was fine without any, she scolded him and put some on anyways. He finished what he could reach and Pepper smiled at him.

"Let's go swimming." Pepper said, already running across the sand.

"Let's go." Tony agreed, following her, not so eagerly.

…

(The next day)

Finally alone, Tony was allowed to freely work on his latest project. His most latest, and most exciting. That didn't completely involve his armor. He wasn't sure what to name it yet, but he knew exactly what it was and what it was for. An AI. He'd promised himself that he'd upgrade his armor's computer systems, so why not make an entire AI for it. At least a working one, since the old "AI" wasn't all that good. He also thought that it would be helpful to have uploaded into the actual armory.

He was just about done, since after all, he's been working on it for weeks now, when he felt a sharp, aching pain in his chest about where his heart implant was. He rolled himself away from his computer where he was working at and clutched his chest. He checked his watch to see if he might've missed when he was supposed to charge it, but found he had yet another two hours till it was absolutely necessary to charge up.

Curious, he pulled his shirt up to see if it was acting up, but found it was showing no hints of malfunctioning or breaking. But by the time his shirt was down again, the pain went away. Unsure how to really think about what had happened, he shook his head and returned to what he was working on.

**Dun Dun DUNNN! Ha, just kidding. We're not there yet! But, you guys like the chapter!? I know i did! LOTS OF PEPPERONY! And if you haven't noticed, they are NOT dating, but it's quite obvious that they like each other. Heehee! **

**Fun Fact: _When me and my best friend were little, we used to shovel snow for money, we found out that a boy we both liked lived only three blocks away from my house, but we didn't know that until that day so when we saw him, she pushed me into a bush and dived behind it. His mom actually asked up to shovel her driveway and when my friend said that we knew her son, she said she'd go get him, and it was so embarrassing because i think he knew we liked him...awkward..._**

**Fun Fact #2: _I like making weird faces at my Computer screen when something is loading._**

**I hoped you guys liked it and i hope to update this one soon! REVIEW please, and Heres some love and joy to spread for EVERYONE! HAPPY MOTHERS DAY!**


	3. Chapter 3

**So, i decided to update this story, it's short, but oh well. I hope it's still good. Sorry that it's short, i couldn't find a way to make it longer, but hopefully in the future it will be better. **

**Disclaimer: IMAA is not mine. **

The next day, Tony found himself waking up around noon. He'd almost forgotten that it was a Sunday and not a Monday. At first he'd panicked and feared for what Pepper and Rhodey were going to do to him for missing school because he slept in. Then he'd remembered that it was still the weekend and calmed down.

He got changed and placed his phone in his pocket. He walked out of his room and found his friend lounged on the couch munching on some chips.

"Good _afternoon_, Tony." Rhodey said, emphasizing on afternoon.

"Oh shut it, I was up late and you know it." Tony said, plopping down on the lounge chair.

"Working on that project you won't give up on?" Rhodey questioned.

Tony nodded. "Jarvis."

"You named it?" Rhodey asked looking at his friend as if he'd gone crazy. After all, Rhodey didn't know the complete details on what it was that Tony was making.

"What kind of AI would it be if it didn't have a name?" Tony asked, honestly shocked that Rhodey didn't know. "JARVIS, Just A Rather Very Intelligent System."

"You're making an AI?" Rhodey asked. "Better than the old one?"

"Yep," Tony said holding his chin up. "He's going to be fully functional around the armory, on my Pod, and the armors."

"Wow, that's big." Rhodey said.

They sat in silence for a while before Tony left to get something to eat. Rhodey soon joined him in his quest for food, since the chips weren't enough. They hung out for most of the afternoon before Tony went to his armory to finish up on Jarvis.

Just as he was about to get to the finishing touches, he felt the sharp pain in his chest again, but this time, it was gone almost as fast as it came. So he couldn't really investigate further.

About ten minutes before Rhodey called to tell him he should come home so he wasn't up all night, Tony finally finished Jarvis. He promised himself that he would run some tests on it as soon as he got out of school. Then he shut off the lights of the armory and began to leave the armory.

Suddenly, as his hand was on the key pad to lock up the armory, he felt very lightheaded. Before he knew what was happening, he collapsed onto the ground, his vision dark before he even made contact with the floor.

…

Rhodey met with Pepper at school with a sigh.

"Long night?" Pepper questioned.

"More like long morning." Rhodey said. "Tony wouldn't answer his cell. He must have been up all night working on Jarvis. I told him to come home last night."

"Jarvis?"

Rhodey nodded. "An AI Tony is building."

"Cool." Pepper said as they walked to class as the bell rang.

They made their way to class and pulled out their books for first period. The voice of the teacher bore into their minds as they listened. Somewhere around the middle of the hour, Tony walked in, annoying the teacher because he was late.

He didn't say anything as he went to his seat.

At lunch time, Rhodey and Pepper found him eating his lunch up on the roof, like usual.

"Where were you?" Rhodey asked.

"The armory, I must have fell asleep there." Tony replied.

"I called you all morning."

"Yeah, my phone died." Tony said. "Left it there to charge."

Rhodey nodded and sat down.

"So, what's this Jarvis AI thingy?" Pepper asked.

Tony looked up, a small smile spreading across his face. "Just A Rather Very Intelligent System, I finished it just before Rhodey called last night."

"You finished it?" Rhodey asked, now curious.

"Yeah, I've been working on it for a while now." Tony stated. "It's going to be one of the biggest upgrades to the Iron man suite yet."

"Sounds cool." Pepper said.

"Yeah."

They sat around until the bell rang for the next hour.

…

Later that night, after Tony returned after running some tests for Jarvis, Rhodey was finishing up homework while Roberta cooked dinner. Tony was with Rhodey until he went to go get a glass of water.

"You look pale Tony, are you feeling okay?" Roberta asked as he walked into the kitchen.

Tony reached up unconsciously to feel his cheek. "Yeah, I feel fine."

He honestly felt fine. Roberta shrugged. "Oh, you just look paler than usual."

"Oh." Was Tony's reply. He then went to get the glass of water he came in there to get.

Not much later after he drank the water and returned to Rhodey's room where Rhodey was on his last problem, Tony felt that sharp pain in his chest again, and instinctively went to grab at his chest as he coughed.

Rhodey looked up at him, "You alright?"

Tony saw Rhodey glance at his chest, where his hand was clutching, and pulled his hand away. "Yeah, I just forgot that I need to charge soon."

He got up and went to his room, and checked his watch. He did need to charge, but he didn't forget. So he plugged the charger into the heart implant and waited a bit until it was time for dinner.

**So despite its shortness, it was Good, right? I hope so.**

**I'm not in a chatty mood, I've been sick with a flu of some sort and i missed track and field today, which if i had gone, i wouldn't have been able to participate cause until now, i really haven't been able to move at all.**

**Fun Fact: _I have an unnatural habit of only getting hungry at the middle of the night, when i can't eat... -.-_**

**So, for now, goodbye, but i hope to update something soon since i have the weekend free, and i'm pretty sure we have monday off as well. REVIEW!**


	4. Chapter 4

**So, I did say i was going to do something on this one, right? So, here it is! :D**** Sorry for the long wait! I hadn't meant for it to be this long, though i never mean it...  
**

**Disclaimer: IMAA is not mine...Heh, we all know that already.**

Tony felt as if his skin was about to burn off. He felt as if he was on fire. But he had to ignore it. He couldn't let it show that he was uncomfortable or in pain. He had to sit through this long lecture then, he could run off and deal with it.

He could feel Rhodey's eyes on him and all he wanted to do was smile over at him and tell him he was fine, but even his throat was on fire. He couldn't speak or move his lips enough to smile over at him.

His rested his head on his crossed arms over the desk. The desk was cold and it felt nice against his burning skin. But sadly, he couldn't sit still enough to enjoy it. He kept shifting in his seat and fiddling with his pencil or his hair or his notebook.

He tried focusing on the teacher, but in all honesty, he hadn't been able to focus on a single word he was saying. It was something about World War I or was it World War II? Vietnam? What this even History class?

He looked at the clock, watching the second hand tick. Too much time. He'd only just gotten there right? There was still over 20 minutes left of class. He could hold it through 'til then, then he'd have to suffer through three more hours.

Oh boy.

Now Pepper was looking. Great. He sat up straight and stared at the teacher, trying to show them that he was okay. He was fine. But wasn't that a lie? What he okay? He even noticed that teacher giving him a worried look or two every so often. Did he really look that bad?

He closed his eyes for a minute, trying to think, trying to focus. But every time, the heat seemed to just get worse. Worse to the point he could feel sweat dripping down his forehead. He scratched at his neck. It burned. He was fire, wasn't he? That's why they keep looking at him. He was on fire and the flames were visible to everyone but himself. That was it.

He could see his hand shaking and he shoved it between his knees to make it stop. Was his whole body shaking now? No, his other hand was still resting peacefully by his notebook, where he should be taking notes.

Then the buzzing started. It started out as a small buzz that sounded familiar, like his heart monitor, so he ignored it. Then it got louder. It sounded like a bug flying near his ear. He swatted at the empty air next to him. Nothing. Oh well. Then, it sounded less like buzzing and more like a squealing noise. Now his ear's burned. His ears ached and felt as if they were clogged with water. Was someone trying to put out the fire?

He looked over at Rhodey to see if he could hear the annoying sound too, but Rhodey was paying attention to the teacher, who might have said something about a comma, was this literature or grammar? Where was he? Had he really walked into class he didn't even know what it was about?

That's when the whispering started. Maybe it was just hissing noises or maybe someone was trying to get his attention. He looked around. Nobody was really looking at him. Then he looked at Pepper who sat Behind Rhodey who was seating next to himself. She was peeking over her notes at him.

He looked away.

The buzzing remained loud in his ears, the whispering never stopped, and the burning just seemed to keep getting hotter. Hotter and hotter, and louder and louder. It was hot, hotter than hot. It was getting worse. Hotter and –

His hand slammed down on his desk, startling a few other students. The teacher's voice silenced as Tony rose his hand. "Can I go to the nurse?"

The teacher looked slightly shocked at the request, but nodded nonetheless. "Go ahead, you're not looking to well."

He didn't bother to wait as he stood up and rushed towards the door. He didn't even reach the front of the class. He already collapsed into somebody's desk, not even knowing who it was as his vision went dark.

…

Rhodey paced the hallway of the hospital. Pepper had been doing it only five minutes ago, until Roberta told her to go get something to eat. But Rhodey wasn't going anywhere. His best friend still hadn't woke up since he passed out at school.

He collapsed into Happy's desk, but girl that sat in front of Tony caught him before he hit the ground. The teacher instantly called for a nurse to come get him, who brought him to the nurse's office. Rhodey and Pepper didn't bother to ask if they could go with, they just ran out of the room. Roberta was quick to come pick him up. When they took his temperature, it was 104.8 degrees. So Roberta decided to bring him to the doctor, when his heart monitor started to act up and start humming loudly, so she decided to bring him to the hospital.

Rhodey and Pepper had stayed at school on Roberta's command, but instantly joined Roberta at the hospital.

"Rhodey, I'm sure he'll be okay." His mother assured him. "You know Tony, he's probably over working himself."

Rhodey nodded, but still didn't think that, that explained the high temperature. But instead of arguing, he sat down next to Pepper who had returned with chips. He sighed, he really wanted to know what was going on with Tony.

This was not the first time that he's noticed Tony's odd behavior. Last week, he'd been clutching at his chest, two days ago, he couldn't stop coughing, and only yesterday he didn't eat because he said he wasn't feeling well.

Now, he passed out with a high fever. He could only wonder what it was that was going on with Tony. And why he hasn't mentioned it yet.

**It was short, but good right? Right into the action huh? MWAHAHAHA! i'm evil, i know it...but hopefully this will get updated sooner than it was this time around. **

**Fun Fact: _I will not eat a hotdog unless their is chilly, otherwise hotdogs are disgusting! Xp Ugh!_**

**Next up, will either be Up in Flames, or maybe snow storms...I dunno. Well, REVIEW and tell me what you think, bye!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Sorry, for the cliffy and sorry the wait. Other stories and all...whoops. Well, Here you go an update!**

**Disclaimer: IMAA is NOT mine, I own NOTHING.**

It took almost 14 hours for Tony to wake up. Of course, that wasn't until it was around 3 o'clock in the morning, so he was alone. It was pretty darn quiet in the room, the only noise being the steady beat of the heart monitor beside him.

Tony's head hurt. And that was putting it mildly. His head, _hurt. _It hurt like he'd just got hit by a semi then got his head smashed, multiple times against a brick wall. Ouch. Also, the burning from earlier decided to take an unexpected turn. He was now _freezing. _Chilly to the bone, freezing.

He groaned as he moved to sit up, finding that not only his head hurt. His whole body hurt, seeming to favor his chest. He looked down at his chest, which was exposed. He found it familiar to all the other times he'd had some kind of operation with the heart implant. They wouldn't put the usual hospital gown on him, but just some hospital like pants. He looked confused when he noticed that there was a few stitches near his heart implant.

He moved his right arm to go feel around, but found it stopped by an IV. Annoyed, he moved his other hand to remove the IV. He hated those things, almost as much as he hated the hospital.

But before he was able to do that, a nurse walked in. She frowned when she saw what her patient was doing and instantly rose her voice. "What are you doing!? Don't do that!"

Tony looked over at the nurse. "Who are you?"

"I'm your nurse, you can call me, Jane."

The nurse quickly peeked her head outside the room. "Sir, he's awake!"

When she returned, doctor Yinsen was with her. Tony laid back down as Dr. Yinsen walked over to him.

Yinsen shook his head in disapproval. "Young boy, why do you work yourself so hard?"

Tony blinked. "Um…what?"

"I'm sorry," Yinsen said. "I should explain myself first. I'm here because your heart implant was malfunctioning. It was sending off the signals to your heart, causing it to beat unnecessarily fast."

"My heart implant?" Tony asked, fingering it with his left hand.

"Indeed," Yinsen replied. "My conclusion to why it was malfunctioning was because you over worked yourself, or got yourself really beat up. Somehow, you managed to slightly dislodge the heart implant itself, causing it to cause irritation to your lungs and rib cage."

Tony paled, even if just slightly, a movement of the heart implant, could be dangerous. If it was moved too much it could do some serious damage, which could be permanent.

Yinsen smiled slightly. "But, I've done a bit of surgery, to fix the problem. You might be a bit sore in the chest for a while, but in a few days, you should be good to go."

"A few days?" Tony asked, unsure if he wanted to stay that long. He'd go crazy if he had to be there for any more than a day or two.

"Yes, and I don't want to hear about any break outs this time, you hear me?"

Tony grumbled but nodded. "Do you mind getting some kind of pain killer, my head is killing me."

Yinsen nodded. "No problem."

…

After only a week or so after he was released, Tony felt so much better than he had before the visit to the hospital. His chest only hurt because of the surgery, but that went away after a while. He no longer coughed for minutes on end. No more passing out at random. No more pain.

He felt like he'd just recovered from a major flu, but only worse. But either way, he felt good for the first time in weeks.

He decided to 'celebrate' by taking his two best friends to a waterpark nearby. They had so much fun. Even though half the time, they tried getting him to explain what was wrong with him before that, which he'd already thought was cleared. He'd told them about what Yinsen had said about the heart implant being dislodged. For what seemed like the millionth time. He'd explained that he had been hiding the fact that he was 'sick' but he said that was the past.

So of course, they had to let it go.

Only a week later, Pepper dragged Tony off to go shopping with her, because she had some extra cash and wanted some new clothes. Which totally took Tony off guard. The last time Pepper took him shopping, he ended up being her shoe carrier… Only this time, she only bought a few things because she said she was growing out of her clothes, which was definitely understandable.

Rhodey dragged him off to some historical convention not too far away from their house.

And a few days later, they all went to see a movie at the theater. Miraculously, that was also the same day, Tony decided to man up and asked Pepper out. They had their first date not long later at the beach.

And Tony sure loved that he was able to do all of that without the fear that he would pass out or something. He sure felt happy that he didn't have to hide anything from his friends anymore. No more lies, no more secrets.

No more secrecy, was all that he wanted. It made him feel all that much better. And he loved that. He loved that he no longer had to lie.

…

Pepper smiled as she walked home with Tony. Rhodey left school early with a fever, so Tony and Pepper were left to walk home alone. Pepper was holding Tony's hand as she led the way to Rhodey's house. She decided she'd go visit her boyfriend at his house to study for upcoming finals.

"I think it's weird how things turned out." Pepper commented a bit randomly.

"Why's that?" Tony asked looked at her curiously.

Pepper pursed her lips. "Well, I've known you for what, 2 years now? And yet, I've loved you ever since that first day."

"Really? You never told me."

"I know, I was too afraid you'd reject me." Pepper replied, squeezing his hand. "I figured a rich, famous genius, like you, would never want a chatty bird like me."

"Don't be ridiculous, not all rich genius's like their own kind." Tony commented. "And between me and you, I'd run away to a different Country before I went out with my own kind."

Pepper laughed. "So, bending the rules, huh? You don't follow tradition."

"Pfft!" Tony said waving his free hand. "I never did."

Pepper replied something back to him, but he never heard her. He was long gone before he even heard the first word she had said. His head colliding with the cement ground before Pepper could even notice.

**Oh dear, I can see it...I can see all the mobs coming after me to kill me if I don't update soon...DX I see lots of threats in my future...****And things seemed like they were solved, huh? Mwahahahhhahahaha!  
**

**Fun Fact: _I strongly believe that opinions matter. I don't believe that facts matter the most. I say, decisions are best made when opinions are told. At least in my opinion. _**

**I'm almost finished with the next chapter for Baby Phase, I'm getting close to rewriting the next chapter for Up in Flames, and I'm going to start a oneshot for the Fourth of July. Happy fourth of July by the way!**

**Hug and love, SilverPedals (Who is currently in hiding)**


	6. Chapter 6

**Okay, SORRY for the long wait! But No need to wait any longer! IT'S HERE! :D YAY! **

**Disclaimer: IMAA is NOT mine! :D See I cooperate just fine 3:)**

Pepper could remember everything that had happened that day. Everything. Well, at least everything from those few hours. She'd been carelessly talking and laughing with Tony, to go study at his place. She said something than he said something, and before she could say the next thing, Tony was too far gone to have heard her. His head smacking hard against the solid cement.

Pepper had almost walked away too. She hadn't heard a single thing from Tony. Not even when he hit the ground. Which probably meant, he blacked out before he even began falling. At least she hadn't gotten far before she realized she should have had some kind of response. So she turned, only to find Tony, sprawled out limp on the ground, a few passing by people, paused in worry.

Pepper didn't hesitate to call the ambulance. She knew Tony hated hospitals, let alone ambulances, but the state he was in, she wasn't about to carry him to a taxi or call Rhodey and wait. She hitched a ride with the ambulance and sat in the waiting room for what seemed like forever until she decided it was best to respond to the many phone calls that Rhodey and her dad sent her.

Rhodey and his mom were the first to arrive. Roberta was quick to comfort her, when she looked panicked. It worked. Rhodey paced. Pepper tried to nap. Tried, being the key word. She failed. Her dad showed up not much later.

"Honey, you alright?" He'd asked.

She nodded, numbly. She knew it wasn't anything serious. Right? They had fixed the problem, they solved it. It couldn't have come back. Not that soon. Yinsen said so himself that as long as Tony stayed calm, and didn't do anything crazy he should heal up just fine. And Pepper and Rhodey made sure that Tony didn't do anything stupid.

So why did this happen?

That was what went through her head the entire visit. It took the doctors well over the average time to tell them what was wrong. They never even got an official answer yet. And they were yet to receive answers. At least useful answers.

Now, after a week, Tony was still in the hospital, not able to much more than stare. Apparently Tony had stopped breathing for a bit over the doctors comfort level, so they stuck a tube down his throat to do it for him. And he'd complained about pain, so they had him pretty dosed up on pain meds, which made him loopy and drowsy. So he slept most the time.

When he was awake, Pepper demanded that he tell her everything that he hid from them. Eventually Rhodey would remind her that Tony couldn't talk to them, until the doctor's safely removed the tube from his throat.

So, instead, Pepper busied herself with keeping him up to date with everything. He'd nod, and she'd continue.

A couple days later, Pepper showed up, for visiting hours. Only to get the surprise that his condition got worse. Pepper was told he had some kind of panic attack and ripped off every IV, and every tube that went into his body. The nurse had to hold him down until they got sedatives in him, knocking him out cold. Since then, his condition worsened, and they have him on more IV's and tubes than before.

Rhodey and Roberta were already there, and comforted Pepper. Though Pepper could tell Rhodey was more worried than she was. Pepper fumed about Tony being stupid and should have just stayed put. Then maybe he wouldn't be in such a bad condition.

Visiting hours were cancelled.

…

Another week passed, and the doctors put Tony's under a medically induced coma so they could operate. Dr. Yinsen decided to pay Tony a visit at some point and found a few things that needed to be fixed in the heart implant. It didn't help that there was reported organ failures and other junky things.

Pepper could hardly focus on school, let alone studying. But she managed. Rhodey was have equal difficulties, if not more. But he didn't show. At least not all that much. He hid it better than Pepper did.

They were finally allowed to visit Tony. It wasn't pretty, but no hospital visit was. Especially when Tony was involved. If Tony was at a hospital, without much fuss, than it was serious. It was nothing to mess around with, because if Tony had an option, he'd be trying to treat himself at the armory. Which didn't sound like the best options, no matter what tech he had.

He was still out like a light, but the doctors said that he should wake up in a few days, with the medically induced coma removed. A few days, and Tony should be awake, and on his way to recovery.

Pepper talked to him, Rhodey did too. Tony didn't even flinch.

"Wake up, you idiot." Pepper said, slapping his exposed arm.

"Pepper!" Rhodey chided, shooting up in his seat. "Don't hit him!"

"Why not!?" Pepper asked, looking to Rhodey. "He was doing _fine _Rhodey! He was walking, RUNNING even. He was FINE! Smiling, laughing, joking, _moving,_ and FINE!"

"I know, Pepper." Rhodey sighed. "Don't you think I know that!?"

"If he was fine, then why is he still here!?" She questioned accusingly. "Why does it seem like we might lose him at any minute?"

Tears were forming in her eyes, but she wiped them away. She wasn't going to cry over this. She wasn't because Tony was going to be fine. He was going to be Just fine, like he was.

"Pepper calm down!" Rhodey snapped, trying not raise his vice.

"Calm DOWN!?" Pepper shouted. "You want me to _CALM DOWN?"_

Rhodey groaned and stood up when Pepper did. He put his hands on her shoulders and tried to calm her into sitting down. "Shh, Pepper, it's late, do you want to get us kicked out?"

She glared at him. "You're best friend could be dying, and all you care about is being kicked out?"

Rhodey was loosing his patience. Pepper had been like this all day. "Pepper, he's my best friend. He's the closest thing I got to a brother, and I might lose him." Rhodey paused, but continued. "I might lose him, so if I do, I want to make sure every moment I have with him counts."

That seemed to calm her down. She took deep breaths and closed her eyes. "I'm sorry…I'm sorry Rhodey, I was selfish."

"Yeah you were." Rhodey agreed. "But, you were worried and stressed, it's alright."

"It's no excuse for me to act that way." Pepper said, ashamed. "I was out of line, I'm sorry."

"Pepper, you're tired, get some rest." Rhodey prompted her.

She nodded. "You're right."

So she hitched a ride home with Roberta, while Rhodey stayed the night.

**Be honest, Good or Bad? :S -(Worried face) **

**Fun Fact: _If I hold my breath, for a contest or whatever, I can't concentrate on what people are saying. I think sometimes I can't even hear them at all. It's happened before. _**

**I have a bunch coming out sometime soon...(I hope) That's the plan at least. Cause if you guys hadn't noticed, I've been pretty busy with writing lately. **

**Review! :D Oh and HUGS and LOVE! SilverPedals! ^.0**


	7. Chapter 7

**I think I've left you guys waiting long enough! :) Sorry 'bout that!**

**Disclaimer: IMAA is not mine! NOR WILL IT EVER BE!**

Tony woke up after another five days. Not for long though. Pepper had been more of talking to herself than anything as she waited for Rhodey to return with lunch. She hadn't even noticed that he was shifting in his bed as his eyes fluttered open. She just held his hand as she subconsciously rubbed circles into the back of his hand.

The instant Pepper realized he was awake, she had looked him in the eye with excitement. Tony, not really knowing where he was, or who he was with, sort of freaked out.

Needless to say, Pepper was ushered out of the room as the doctor's once again sedated him before he could hurt himself any more than he already had.

…

Three more days of close observation, limited visiting hours, and horrible hospital food, Tony woke up once again. Luckily, it was the middle of the night, and a nurse was there to calm him down and explain some things before he got too many of the IV's out of himself.

He was soon taken off of the breathing tubes, so he could talk again. He couldn't say much, since they drugged him up pretty good with pain killers. After all, he did demand for them. He fell asleep soon enough though.

Pepper must have been the happiest one to see that he was awake, and not panicking. At least as far as Tony could see, Rhodey and the rest of them seemed to just be immensely relived.

Pepper tried squeezing him to death, but a nurse pulled her away quickly not wanting to harm Tony any further, saying his lung were just starting to work properly again, and he did just undergo a bunch of operations. Pepper gladly backed away.

She held his hand as the others went for lunch, promising to get Tony some food, since the only thing he's eaten since he first arrived was weird stuff through a tube.

"I was worried you know." Pepper said softly. "I almost failed Algebra because I lost my best study partner."

Tony actually looked a bit worried himself. "Pep, you know Rhodey's close to acing Algebra as well."

Pepper smiled lightly at him. Trying to ignore how scratchy his voice sounded. After all, he hadn't spoken a work for weeks. "Rhodey had his own demons to fight."

Tony looked guilty. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be sorry." Pepper whispered, Pepper felt close to tears. That's just how relieved she was. Though, she wasn't just relieved, she was scared. Scared that something else was going to happen. Something was bound to happen. Something always happened. They thought they fixed the problem there last trip to the hospital. Too bad that wasn't the case.

She felt scared that the next time, they weren't going to be so lucky. One of these days, Tony might get sick beyond measure. He might not recover….he could…he could die!? He might die one of these days, couldn't he? And there was going to be nothing that she could do about it! What if he –

"Pep!"

Pepper blinked when she heard his voice. She'd been so worked up, she must not have noticed that Tony's been trying to call her for almost 3 minutes. At least according to him.

"Yeah?"

Tony squeezed her hand, though a bit weakly. "I'll be fine, I promise."

She couldn't help but smile. He could always tell what she was thinking. "I know, Tony. Everything will be fine, I know it."

Tony smiled at her before yawning. "I'm beat, I think I'm going to take a nap."

Pepper raised an eyebrow. It'd been only a little over an hour since he woke up from his last nap. She didn't question it though. Of course he was going to be tired.

Instead, she just crawled in next to him.

…

It took Tony about two days to return back to normal. Well, close to normal. He no longer wanted to go along with the whole hospital thing. Typical Tony. He already tried coming up with a plan of escape, but Pepper managed to talk him out of it. That didn't mean he liked it though. He just went along with everything for Pepper's sake.

After all, she was his girlfriend.

Though, he was still pretty out of it. He still took way too much naps, and he was still in too much pain to sit comfortable without some kind of pain med. So he often had groggy conversations with Rhodey and Pepper.

Soon enough though, the day had arrived where Tony was allowed to leave the hospital. After days and days of tests, hospital food, and constant watch over him, he was finally allowed to go home. Of course, he was strictly limited on what he was able to do. The doctors told him to be extremely careful for the next couple weeks to make a full recovery.

Which, to the doctors, it seemed like an easy task. But to the genius's best friend and his girlfriend, it was nearly impossible. They knew Tony was going to get back in the game as soon as he got the chance. Though, they were determined to keep him away from the armor, and out of trouble.

After all, he did have tons of homework to catch up on.

…

Turns out, they had no problem keeping Tony out of the game. It came as a shocker when the genius himself said that he didn't plan on confronting any villains at the time being. He even went as far to set Rhodey in command of the use of Iron Man.

After some intense training on how to use the Iron Man armor correctly. Though, Rhodey didn't want to admit to it, but he'd already pretty much mastered the use of the armor, saying the weeks that Tony was in the hospital, he already did have to take over.

Tony seemed quite focused on his latest invention. Jarvis. He'd been running tests, and even more tests since he first got to the lab. He seemed determined to perfect Jarvis in any way he could. His friends had to admit, the finished product, was impressive. Almost as impressive as the Iron Man armor itself.

Especially when the Ai itself got uploaded to the armor, just as Tony had planned.

Tony seemed quite healthy compared to the last days he spent in the hospital. They must have fixed him up pretty good for him to be so active so soon. Though, luckily he hasn't gone and done anything stupid yet, so they should be fine.

…

Test results for everything turned up negative. All the tests that the doctors ran, were a negative. Which, was a good sign, sure, but that just made them worry even more. If he was healthy and he wasn't sick in any sort of way, then why did he have to spend weeks in the hospital?

Even the doctors were baffled by the results. They highly expected it to be something deadly or serious, but to turn up empty? That couldn't be right.

They wanted to run some more tests on him, to double check or find something that they must have missed, but Tony denied their request. He was too stubborn to go back to that hospital. No way was he going back, for he knew the doctors wouldn't find anything.

He'd just have to trust that everything was fine, and nothing was wrong.

…

Tony was alone, and talking some plans through Jarvis for his next project. It was one of those Monday's where school was off, and he decided to do something useful. Rhodey was off handling some Jewelry Thieves, while Pepper was at her aunt's house.

So, Tony was alone. He was actually finishing up his latest project. He was going to do what the doctor's couldn't. He was going to find out what was wrong with him. Sure, he _liked_ to believe that nothing was wrong, and that the doctor's really did fix him, but that didn't mean he actually _did _believe that. He _wanted _to trust that he will be just find, but he couldn't.

He didn't _feel_ right.

"Jarvis, run some final tests, I want to see results." Tony said.

"Yes, sir."

**Worth the wait? I sure hope so, cause I worked pretty hard with this! :D **

**Fun Fact: _I love shopping for school stuff, but I don't like school all to much._**

**Good news you guys! (Well for me) I finally get to see my dad! (I think) I haven't seen him since a funeral last christmas, and that last time I went to his house was way over a year ago! :( BUT, I'm almost positive he's going to be taking me to the State Fair, and we're going to watch tons of movies, and most of all, I get to see him for THREE WHOLE DAYS! :'D I'm the happiest girl EVER right now! **

**On a different note, I _think_ I'll be attacking an old story of mine, that I think a lot of you guys are going to like! :) How many of you guys want to guess which one? No promises though, because I'm babysitting a lot, and I'm going to my first year of high school next week, so I might be a bit busy, but i'm not entirely sure! :)**

**Hugs and Love, SilverPedals!**

**P.S. Any of you have an good Male Bird Names I can use? (No commons ones, if you have one or so)**


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